Jenna Dewan Found Her Home Base in This Elevated, Family-Friendly LA House

Every buyer formulates a wish list when looking for the perfect home. Actress Jenna Dewan’s must-haves included modern, yet warm interiors, sunset views, and enough space for two adults, two kids and four dogs. Dewan, who just wrapped Season 4 of The Rookie on ABC, Season 2 of Superman & Lois on the CW, and the CBS parent-child competition show Come Dance with Me, was living in a rental house until she spotted the perfect place, in the same Los Angeles neighborhood. 

“I was really looking for a home base,” shares Dewan, a multi-hyphenate who got her start as a dancer, but later established herself as an actress, author, host, producer, and most recently, judge. “There has been a migratory feeling over the past few years, which was why finding this house was so important and special for me.”

Dewan became engaged to Tony-winning actor Steve Kazee in February 2020 and gave birth to their son, Callum, the following month. The couple’s family also includes Dewan’s nine-year-old daughter, Evie (with ex-husband Channing Tatum), as well as dogs Cosmo, Meeka, Stella and Wylie. “This house immediately checked so many boxes,” she says. “There’s lots of room for the kids and the backyard is great.”

The modern farmhouse features an open kitchen, adjoining family room and floor-to-ceiling sliding doors perfect for entertaining. “When those doors are completely open, the house just comes alive,” says Dewan, who collaborated with Julien Marbot of Interior Particulier on the design of the home. “I had a lot of great ideas about how I wanted things to feel, and Julien helped me accomplish that feeling, bringing flow and cohesiveness to the house.”

Dewan desired a comfortable, family-friendly feel, but also wanted to incorporate Kazee’s hipster vibe. “Steve and I are opposites in so many ways,” she acknowledges. “He loves Edison bulbs and I love cozy couches and crystals.” Nevertheless, the pair was able to come together. “We agreed on a lot, actually,” she says. “He’s got really good style and we blend and balance each other very well.”

Marbot did an expert job mixing cozy rugs and plush sofas with sleek tables and striking modern art, including three Wes Aderhold pieces adorning the walls. Dewan emphasized the need for furniture that was child-proof, even putting the kibosh on a gorgeous marble table Marbot found because of its sharp corners. “I want the house to have a nice, elevated feel,” she explains, “but I don’t want to be the helicopter mom chasing Callum around making sure he doesn’t get hurt. I told Julien, ‘Think rounded corners and soft edges.’”

Dewan and Marbot also worked together to incorporate furniture she already owned. “There were a few pieces I was obsessed with from All Modern that I kept, and even a few items from my first house,” she says. The green velvet sofa in the living room was one of the keepers.

“I just love that couch and think it’s so unique.” The low-slung style is perfectly suited to the windows in that room. “I find Evie curled up on that green couch all the time,” she says. “That entire room has turned into quite the hang spot.”

Part of the appeal of the elegant living room is the antique Ivers & Pond piano that Dewan inherited from her paternal grandmother after she passed away.

“People often ask if I had anyone musical in my family,” says Dewan. “She was the only one.”

Her grandmother was a singer, ballet dancer, and piano teacher. She even ran a jazz club in Connecticut, where she lived. She tried, in vain, to teach Dewan how to play.

Fortunately, Kazee, who is best known for starring in the musical Once on Broadway, knows how, and Dewan says Evie and Callum think they do too. “When we have people over for dinner, it gets played,” she says. “That makes me happy because I feel like it is what she wanted.”

Dewan is proud of how well everything works together—from treasured family heirlooms to new finds. “I love the combination that happened in this house,” she says. “In the past, I might have been a little bit more cluttered and feminine, with throws and frilly touches. I love that my style has evolved.”

Part of that evolution was the creation of a dedicated home office, which features a handsome teak-and-metal desk and a series of framed photographs from Studio 54. “As soon as we moved in, I needed an office that was well-lit for Zooms and interviews,” says Dewan, who holds all of the meetings for her production company, Everheart, on Zoom.

“This has become my decompress room,” Dewan says. “I can come in here, close the door, do my Zooms and do my work. It’s really bright, and I love the desk.”

Before the pandemic, Dewan was accustomed to driving all over the city for meetings, lunches and shoots, often spending 45 minutes in the car each way. Though she acknowledges that for certain things, in-person connection is key, the Peabody Award winner says, “I am still here for the Zoom life. It saves me. I can do more and do it smarter.” 

Another perk of working from home, Dewan shares, is being dressed the way she was for this interview, in what she calls “mom sweats.” When the bulk of her work is over the phone and by email, she often goes makeup-free.

“I am not someone who wakes up and wants a glam team to get me ready for the day,” she says. “If I am not working on set, my hair is up in a bun, and I am in comfortable clothes.” Evie is keenly aware of the difference. “She calls it ‘work mom’ and ‘mom mom,’” Dewan says, laughing.

On the days Dewan does need to get ready for a press appearance or red-carpet affair, her hair and makeup team descends upon the pool house, which has really good light. “There are a lot of people who pull me together for these events,” Dewan says, humbly. “It’s a circus.” The beauty of setting up shop in the pool house, she explains, is that Callum can nap in peace inside the main house, while Dewan and her team play music out back. 

In fact, Dewan feels like her brood makes the most of every square foot of space in and around their home. “The kitchen is where everyone congregates,” she says. “From 4:00 to 8:00 p.m., it’s non-stop, inside and out.”

Dewan refers to that late afternoon/early evening window as “the witching hour,” when Evie returns home from school, busies herself doing homework at the kitchen nook, and Callum wakes up from his nap. “The second half of the day is all about the kids,” she says. “I love it so much.”

Evie and Callum have their own special space on the side yard, with a CedarWorks playset that features a rock-climbing wall, two swings and a slide. Evie also spends a ton of time in the saltwater pool. “My daughter is a fish,” says Dewan. “She absolutely loves this pool and is constantly swimming.” During the witching hour, Dewan says all four of them often hang out in the water. And at night, Dewan and Kazee enjoy soaking in the hot tub.

Dewan is lucky enough to have two other places in her home meant for relaxation. The first is an upstairs patio that Marbot turned into a meditation space, complete with a waterfall, for Dewan’s daily practice.

“He got my bohemian, spiritual side,” she says, happily. “There is a feeling of Zen as soon as you walk out there.” The second spot is the primary bathroom. “Part of my self-care is taking a bath before the kids’ bedtime,” says Dewan, who is grateful to Kazee for watching Callum and affording her that luxury. 

The configuration of the bedrooms is another source of pride for Dewan, who is grateful that they are all on the same level.

“When I was a kid, I always wanted a brother or sister right next door,” explains the only child, “so I like that the kids’ bedrooms are together in one wing. Plus, we have a little one, and as much as I would like him to sleep perfectly every night, he doesn’t yet. I feel safer having him close by.”

Dewan also loves how the primary bedroom opens onto a patio. “There are beautiful sunsets,” she says. “The view of the San Fernando Valley is amazing.”

This summer, Dewan looks forward to opening her home again to family and friends. She and Kazee love to entertain but stopped when the latest surge of Covid cases hit Southern California this spring.

“Now that it’s becoming safer, I am going to start having people over again,” says Dewan, excitedly. As for their wedding plans, she says, “There has been so much going on, not just worldly, but professionally, too. We are in the figuring-it-out process still.” From our perspective, they’ve got their home life figured out splendidly.